Pet of the Month

Dedicated to providing compassionate care throughout the life of your pets.

March 2024

Congratulations To Sampson!

Sampson

If you’ve seen a Rottweiler in a t-shirt lately, it might’ve been Sampson! When Sampson first came to us, he was fearful of procedures, like many other pets during their visits to the vet. To avoid further escalation of his fear level, we utilized sedation to perform his annual preventative care. However, in December 2023, we discovered Sampson is diabetic. Managing diabetes in pets can include routine, invasive procedures, such as pricking the ears or foot pads, insulin administration, and more. To help Sampson feel comfortable with his new daily routine needed to monitor and manage his diabetes, his owner worked with our team to help him adjust by using fear free techniques. She used treats and petting to help distract him during his insulin injections, and she found that acting calm and making the injections “no big deal” helped Sampson a lot.

In clinic, we desensitized him to having an area of fur shaved to apply a flash blood glucose sensor, called FreeStyle Libre, by slowly introducing him to the clippers and sensor and rewarding him with treats and petting as we made progress. Today, Sampson routinely receives his insulin injections at home, and he takes pre-visit prescriptions to help manage his anxiety and fear level before he comes to the clinic for his sensor applications. With this medications and training on board, Sampson, his owner, and our team have been able to successfully provide him the care he needs. He’s even discovered a new passion for fashion, as he wears fun t-shirts to help protect his sensor! Pets like Sampson are the reason why we stand by our fear free practices. By utilizing these techniques, we are able to help many pets overcome fear and anxiety in and out of the clinic.

FreeStyle Libre flash blood glucose sensors are a tool that allows pet owners and Veterinarians to quickly and easily monitor a pet’s diabetes. Though designed for humans, these sensors can be applied to a pet’s bare skin and scanned with a smart phone while using the associated app. They provide a way to easily attain a pet’s glucose level reading at home or on-the-go without having to prick the animal for a blood sample. The sensors themselves are only about the size of a quarter, and take readings by implanting a small sampling catheter beneath the pet’s skin, rather than gathering a reading from the blood.

https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=9150771

February 2024

Congratulations To Lady!

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Lady is a 9 year old Miniature Pinscher who has been coming to our hospital since 2019. Upon Lady’s first appointment, it was noted by the owner that she was very fearful of the vet. When the doctor and technician approached Lady during her first appointment, Lady did try to nip and cried out at the staff. We were able to perform an exam that day, but Lady was extremely fearful of all the handling and instruments. Because we are Fear Free and only want the best for Lady and her care moving forward, we made a plan with the owner to work on modifying Lady’s behavior to become less fearful of the vet.

 Our first recommendation for Lady was to be started on pre-visit pharmaceuticals. Pre-visit pharmaceuticals are medications that the veterinarian prescribes to help alleviate anxiety and stress prior to stressful situations. Sometimes, one or two medications are enough to take the edge off to handle pets in a Fear Free manner. However, there are pets that need a combination of medications with behavior modification. In Lady’s case she was too stressed about nail trims, more invasive portions of her exam, and blood draws that even with pre-visit pharmaceuticals, she had to be sedated. Pets that are highly anxious still when they come back with pre-visit pharmaceuticals will do better if they are sedated. When giving the sedation injection for Lady though, she would become so worked up that we had to pick her up with a thick towel to keep her still while we gave it. So for Lady, her best interest was to continue the pre-visit pharmaceuticals while working with Dr. Forbes on behavior modification to avoid having to sedate her forever and have her become less fearful of the veterinary hospital and procedures that come with it.

During these behavior modification visits, there is nothing medically necessary done to the pet. We strictly focus on behavior, desensitizing, and counter conditioning the pet that the veterinary hospital is not a fearful place. Counter conditioning is a behavior modification technique in which a stimulus that creates a negative emotional response is paired with something known to create a positive emotional response in the animal. Desensitization is a behavior modification technique in which an animal is gradually and systematically exposed to a trigger stimulus until the stimulus no longer triggers an emotional response. We do this with positive reinforcement.  Positive reinforcement is the process of rewarding or reinforcing desirable behavior in order to increase the likelihood that the behavior will be repeated in the future.  For Lady, we found that she highly valued chicken and began working on her behavior modification

During Lady’s behavior modification visits, Dr. Forbes first started with basics of getting Lady comfortable with her presence in the exam room. This involved tossing treats to Lady to get her to come explore the room and the doctor to become acquainted. From there we gave recommendations to the owner on training Lady to a mat or rug. This would give Lady a “place” where the training would be and if at any point Lady were uncomfortable, she could easily walk away from the mat indicating that training has stopped and she is uncomfortable. This gives Lady the opportunity to provide consent.  If she’s ready to proceed, she will get on the mat and training would continue. This would aid in the behavioral modification as it would let Dr. Forbes know what procedures were okay with Lady and what procedures were not.  In the beginning, most things were scary and uncomfortable for Lady, so we just focused on touching her. But with repetition and positive reinforcement, Lady became more and more comfortable with each visit with us petting her, staying on the mat, and eating her high value treat.

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Over time, we decided to have the owner work on training chin rest, as Lady was very nervous about approaches and instruments. Chin rest is a learned behavior where a pet holds its chin in the palm of your hand for the duration of each procedure, and then being rewarded for holding this position after the procedure is finished. This would give Lady something to focus on while the procedures are being done, knowing that a yummy treat would be rewarded after.  As time went on, she no longer needed it for most of her exam.  We now use it primarily to look in her mouth. Lady was and still is leery of the stethoscope.  She will allow it for brief periods, but we’ve learned that she tolerates it better when we are holding her in our arms. This was a challenge as well, as Lady did not enjoy being picked up. So the owner taught lady a command to prep her that she is being picked up and we have practiced picking her up and then putting her down since. 

With repetition and giving Lady the option to walk away, she began to become even more comfortable and eager to come here, knowing she would get rewarded for the positive behaviors. She has even developed a strong bond with Dr. Forbes.  For procedures like a dental where a pet goes under anesthesia and needs pre-surgical blood work, a thorough exam and a catheter placed; we simply sedate Lady first so she is completely asleep for all of this so we don’t regress any of Lady’s progress. After these larger procedures, Lady usually does very well and actually seeks attention from Dr. Forbes- something she never used to do.

Currently, Lady is still doing behavior modifications to this day. The frequency of the modifications has lessened as Lady has gotten more comfortable with all of the handling and procedures. We are so proud of the owner and Lady for working so hard and coming so far. Congrats to Lady for Pet of the Month!

Below is a link for teaching chin rest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2lnaerPR5o

January 2024

Congratulations To Sydney!

sydney hendrickson pic
Congratulations to Sydney! Many of our furry friends struggle with arthritis pain as they age, and unfortunately, Sydney knows that all too well. As a large, 14-year-old dog, she has the perfect genetic and anatomical combination to lead to debilitating arthritis pain. Over the years, she slowly started to have a harder time running, walking, playing, and just being her normal self. Recently, she became unable to use the stairs, making it hard for her and her owner’s daily activities. Initially, Sydney was placed on a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), called Carprofen, which is effective in minimizing pain and inflammation. This category of drug is similar to people taking Ibuprofen or Tylenol for mild-to-moderate pain. However, long-term use of NSAID’s can lead to several side effects such as vomiting, diarrhea, liver and/or kidney failure and even death. In Sydney’s case, her kidneys and liver were beginning to be negatively affected by the long-term use. This left her with the option of Gabapentin, another common pain medication with less severe side effects. Unfortunately, when used alone, Gabapentin does not provide a substantial amount of pain relief in severe cases.
Fortunately, a new treatment for arthritis pain, Librela, has been approved by the FDA for veterinary use in the United States. Over the past two years, Zoetis conducted clinical studies in Europe on hundreds of dogs with arthritis pain. Dogs given the Librela injection had an overall improvement in quality of life with decreased pain as early as 7 days post-injection. Although, it’s important to note that maximum pain relief was seen after the second or third injection when the drug is able to reach its efficacy threshold. For the last three months, Sydney has been getting the monthly Librela injection in our clinic, and her owners have seen some impressive results. Not only can she use the stairs in her home again, but she has increased her daily activity enough to lose some extra weight. Weight loss also takes stress off her joints, making the treatment more helpful over time. We are so happy to see Sydney’s improvement and cannot wait to see many other patients benefit from this new medical breakthrough in the future.
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Zoetis. (n.d.). https://www.zoetisus.com/products/dogs/librela/

November 2023

Congratulations To Maddie!

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Maddie was adopted 2 years ago from a rescue and her and her best friend Lexie have been inseparable ever since. Lexie knew she was the one for her as soon as Maddie stuck her head in Lexie’s armpit upon their first meeting. Together, they have been working on helping Maddie feel safe with new people and experiences. While Maddie might have to work through some anxiety at times, she has come so far since that first day. She is energetic, happy, and the sweetest pup around. Maddie loves to run, chase snowballs, and play with her candy corn bats. When she isn’t sprinting around the living room, she can be found snuggled up with her favorite humans. She is inspiring and brings happiness wherever she goes. Lexie can’t imagine life without her sweet girl.
Being away from home is hard for everyone, that includes our fur babies. It can be very stressful for our pets to be away from us for any period of time which is why we work hard to make them as comfortable and happy any time they stay with us. Maddie first started staying with us in boarding recently and was extremely fearful of the new setting. Our kennel staff worked diligently with her to help her adjust to boarding. Using Fear Free techniques, we were able to help her become more confident with our staff and hospital. She has come out of her shell and is a completely different dog compared to when we first met her. Where she would cower and hide upon approach during her first stay, she now approaches with a happy tail and eager attitude. She continues to get better with every visit and we are amazed at how quickly we were able to help her trust our staff.
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Maddie’s transformation is one of the reasons we do what we do. Her growth demonstrates that a little love and compassion goes a long way and can change our precious fur babies for the better.

September 2023

Congratulations To Bader!

Bader was found heartworm positive on the streets of East St. Louis and made her way to Gateway Pet Guardians rescue. They believed her to probably have been a breeding dog for fighting pit bulls. At some point during Bader’s time in the shelter, she was attacked by another pup and her reactivity emerged. She was put in their Unicorn Pet Program – meaning she was special and a bit trickier to find a home for since she needed to be an only pet. Bader was at Gateway for about 9 months before she started to rapidly deteriorate in the shelter environment. She refused to eat, but the staff could convince her to eat cheeseburgers and ice cream. Bader was a favorite because of her crazy eyes when she ate special treats. Gateway finally found a foster placement for Bader, a grad student named Bridgette. Bridgette worked hard to help Bader get adopted, featuring her couch potato personality and how far she had come in her training and manners. Alli saw the social media feature of Bader, known in the shelter as Gillian and Jelly Bean, on Gateway’s instagram and thought Bader would be a perfect match. Alli adopted Bader in January 2020 from Gateway Pet Guardians in St. Louis while in law school – naming Bader after Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Bader was initially men reactive, but fell in love with Alli’s partner, Ross, and Bader quickly adopted him. Ross (and lots of dedicated training) helped Bader overcome her fear of men. Bader moved from downtown St. Louis, to Washington D.C., and finally to Columbia, MO with Alli and Ross. Bader’s mom and dad were SO excited to finally get Bader.
Bader first came to Rock Bridge Animal Hospital for a suture removal following a mast cell tumor removal at another clinic. The staff instantly fell in love with Bader. She loves butt scratches and licking the cheese spoon so hard that is goes flying! Bader did great for her suture removal and exam, and her owners appreciated how patient we were with her. Unfortunately, Bader soon came back into the clinic for two lumps-on her chest and her back rear leg-that had been growing and changing in size. We took a sample of the masses and upon looking at them under the microscope we were suspicious of another mast cell tumor.
A mast cell is a type of white blood cell that plays a role in the immune system. A mast cell tumor forms when a mass of mast cells forms and become malignant. There is not one single know cause of mast cell tumors, but environmental factors seem to play a role and certain breeds like Boxers, Labrador Retrievers, and some Terriers are more prone to them.

Once we had diagnosed that Bader did have mast cell tumors, the next best treatment was removal. This was performed under anesthesia and we also took chest x rays to confirm that the tumors had not spread to other parts of Bader’s body.

Unfortunately, due to one of the tumors being on a high movement area on Bader’s leg, the incision site did start to reopen. This required Bader to come back in every day for a week for sedated bandage changes until the wound had healed enough to finally reclose it.

Through all of this process we utilized fear free techniques to make these experiences as pleasant as possible for Bader. Being as food motivated as she is, we offered lots of treats to give Bader something to focus on besides sedation pokes and wound treatment. Bader also benefited from minimal restraint for procedures, as she gets nervous with too many people trying to touch her at one time. Bader is doing great now! Her incisions have healed nicely and she is back to her happy, wiggly self.

August 2023

Congratulations To Brescia!

Visiting the vet for many people can be a daunting task, let alone spending a night alone while your family is away. However, this was not the case for Brescia. Allow us to share what set apart Brescia’s time with us and how we are making a difference in Brescia’s life with our Fear Free approach.

In 2017, Fear Free began at Rock Bridge Animal Hospital. It started with each staff member earning their individual Fear Free certifications. In 2018, we became the first Fear Free Certified Practice in Columbia. This means that we take your pet’s emotional well-being just as seriously as their physical well-being. Every staff member on the team goes through the certification and training so they can learn the signs of fear and anxiety your pets display and the best way to address it so that they are more comfortable. As a Fear-Free Certified Practice, we incorporate fear-free methodologies in every process of our hospital from the environment, customer education, ongoing staff training, boarding facilities, and patient visits.

Now let’s meet Brescia!

Brescia is a beloved Siberian Husky mix, who was rescued by Mya from a hostile environment in February 2020. Within hours of caring for Brescia, Mya felt an instant unbreakable bond with her. Despite Brescia’s destructive tendencies, Mya says Brescia’s loving nature brings light and warmth into their home. Brescia loves chasing squirrels and rabbits during their long hikes, and she embraces all opportunities to explore and experience nature.

When Brescia first came into the hospital to stay in our boarding facility she was reasonably nervous, since Brescia already had a negative experience at a young age, we immediately began implementing strategies to alleviate her anxiety. This starts by referencing our FAS scale, the Fear, Anxiety, and Stress Scale which helps us understand what an animal’s body language is telling us. We began by letting Brescia come to us at her own pace; liver treats soon became a quick way to win Brescia’s trust. We repeated the treat-giving process until Brescia was excited to follow us.
Once settled in our boarding facility, we created a calming environment. Soft, soothing music is played in the background to provide a sense of tranquility. Additionally, we utilized odorless pheromones dispersed by Adaptil diffusers. These pheromones mimic the calming messages that mother dogs give to their puppies. We also sprayed Brescia’s blankets with Adaptil spray to further enhance her feeling of security.

As Brescia began to feel more comfortable, she revealed her unique personality and formed a positive, trusting relationship with our team. She introduced us to her favorite stuffed beaver, which she loved to snuggle with every day. We enjoyed playing Tug-O-War, offering plenty of cuddles, and taking her on exploratory walks around the facility.

Over time, Brescia’s confidence grew, and she transformed from a nervous girl into a confident one. Mya and her companion Brescia continue to board with us; Brescia eagerly awaits to make new memories during her stays with us.

Congratulations To Truman
Truman is a 7 year old neutered male boxer belonging to a wonderful family. He is also a laid back couch potato that loves to snuggle with his family! He came to Rock Bridge Animal Hospital to see Dr. Susan Sappington for his annual wellness exam and vaccines. During the history, his mom mentioned a new mass on Truman’s inner left knee. After looking at the mass, Dr. Sappington recommended a needle aspirate to collect cells to look at under the microscope for identification. Truman is a 7 year old neutered male boxer belonging to a wonderful family. He is also a laid back couch potato that loves to snuggle with his family! He came to Rock Bridge Animal Hospital to see Dr. Susan Sappington for his annual wellness exam and vaccines. During the history, his mom mentioned a new mass on Truman’s inner left knee. After looking at the mass, Dr. Sappington recommended a needle aspirate to collect cells to look at under the microscope for identification.

A week later, Truman was placed under anesthesia and the tumor was surgically removed. He was sent home with pain medications and an e-collar to prevent him from bothering the incision site. His sutures would be removed in 10-14 days and the doctor would check how things were healing.

A few days later, Truman’s mom called to let us know that Truman had been reaching around the cone to lick at the incision site. There was still quite a bit of swelling, bruising, and drainage from the incision site. We modified his cone by taping two of the largest sizes together to extend their length and prevent Truman from bothering his knee.

Truman was brought in for an exam and Dr. Sappington recommended microscopic cytology to look at the drainage under a microscope. A small sample of the fluid from the wound was applied to a glass slide and stained to help the bacteria become visible under the microscope. A shape of bacteria called cocci was seen as well as neutrophils, a type of white blood cells that fights infection. Truman was started on clavamox, an antibiotic that treats bacteria most commonly introduced to wounds by a dog’s mouth.

A week later, the incision site on Truman’s knee pulled apart. Dr. Sappington decided to use a type of bandage called a tie over bandage. This involves sedation to add sutures (stitches) around the open wound to allow a bandage to be tied down. Sugar has been used for centuries in wound care due to its ability to pull out moisture, preventing the growth of bacteria which thrive in a moist environment.
The bandage needed to be changed daily to replace the sterile gauze and sugar being used to dry the wound. Dr. Sappington sent a sample of the drainage to a veterinary pathologist to culture the bacteria (grow in a laboratory setting) and test for it antibiotic resistance. Antibiotic resistance is when an antibiotic is unable to kill bacteria due to biologic properties of the bacteria that allow it to defeat the antibiotic.

Truman would need to be sedated daily for his initial bandage changes due to the sensitivity of the open wound. Due to his pre-existing conditions including a mild heart murmur and mildly elevated kidney values, special sedation drugs were selected by Dr. Sappington. He was monitored by the technicians and doctor throughout his procedures, just like his surgery. When the wound had healed enough to allow at home care, Truman had his daily bandage changes performed by his family. Truman’s mom described using treats and lots of head scratches to keep Truman still during the process. After flushing the wound and applying an antibiotic ointment, they tied the bandage. This was the tricky part, but Truman’s parents were up for the challenge. They carefully tied down the non-stick padding, gauze, and outer bandage using umbilical tape which looks like a long string. They carefully weaved this through the loops made by Dr. Sappington to hold the bandage in place. Truman got used to this process over time and even fell asleep during his bandage changes!
Six days after sending the bacteria sample to a lab for culturing, we received the results. They showed that the bacteria were resistant to clavamox, as well as most other oral antibiotic options. Dr. Sappington spoke with a veterinary pathologist who recommended a “bacteria blast” using forceful flushing with chlorhexidine to remove the bacteria, followed by another flush with an ear cleaning solution containing TrizEDTA, a compound that breaks down bacterial cell walls and the biofilm that protects them. A biofilm is a complex structure of bacteria colonies at the surface of the skin or an open wound. Care is taken to flush from top to bottom so as not to let the blasted bacteria land back on the wound surface. An antibiotic cream called mupirocin was applied topically and had the right antibiotics for Truman’s bacterial infection.

During one of Truman’s recheck appointments, his knee was healing well so Dr. Sappington recommended sedation to reclose the wound with sutures and allow it to finish healing so there would be no more bandage changes. Unfortunately, this opened up again a few days later, likely because the incision was over a very mobile part of the knee. The wound was left to heal by second intention which is a process of healing involving granulation tissue which covers the entire wound over time. His family continued bandage changes and wound care at home.

Finally, two months after the mass was removed and two weeks after he was started on the biofilm blast and ointment, Dr. Sappington determined that Truman’s wound was fully healed. Thanks to the patient and thorough care provided by Dr. Sappington and the Rock Bridge staff, his loving family, and the laboratories that consulted on his samples, Truman is doing great! His family tells us that he loves to play with his coonhound brother and human little sister. Truman’s mom told us that although it sometimes it felt like his wound would never heal, they are thankful for the care he received.